A century ago, a glimmer beneath the rocks changed everything.
In 1925, the discovery of gold along the rugged shores of Red Lake ignited a frenzy that forever shaped the landscape and economy of northwestern Ontario. This year, Red Lake marks 100 years since its legendary gold rush, honouring its deep mining roots with not one, but two epic summer weekends of celebration.
From July 18 to 20 (Norseman Festival) and July 25 to 27 (Centennial Weekend), the town will be paying homage to the past while inviting a new generation of explorers, road-trippers, and wilderness lovers to experience Red Lake.
What started with a single gold discovery in July 1925 quickly transformed Red Lake into one of Canada’s richest mining districts. Within just a few years, Red Lake was buzzing with floatplanes, bunkhouses, and hopeful miners as multiple mines opened, extracting millions of ounces of gold over the decades and earning Red Lake the nickname: “The High-Grade Gold Capital of the World.”
Today, that golden legacy lives on. Mines such as Red Lake Mine (operated by Evolution Mining), Madsen Mine (under West Red Lake Gold Mines), and the Great Bear Project, led by Kinross continue to actively source high-grade gold. The history is also preserved and celebrated at the Red Lake Regional Heritage Centre, which hosts a series of centennial exhibits, special events, and immersive storytelling sessions, bringing to life the miners, aviation pioneers, and First Nations contributions that built the community from the rock up.
This summer, visitors will find echoes of that past throughout town, as Red Lake honours its roots with guided heritage tours, mining displays, and immersive historical storytelling during its 100th anniversary celebration weekend.
Red Lake is pulling out all the stops for its centennial with two back-to-back weekends of celebration, each packed with unique events, entertainment, and community pride.
Red Lake’s annual Norseman Festival is this weekend and celebrates its bush flying heritage with family-friendly entertainment, historic plane flyover,s and a lakeside festival atmosphere.
Highlights include: Fish fry dinners and food vendors, massive vendor market, a family zone with bouncy castles and a mini-train, Dr. Von Houligan’s Family Extravaganza, fireworks Saturday night, and a float pumping contest. A complete rundown of the weekend events can be found at this website.
The following weekend, Red Lake officially celebrates 100 years of gold with a centennial celebration weekend from July 25 to 27. Among the weekend highlights is northwestern Ontario’s first-ever drone show with more than 250 drones lighting up the sky in a choreographed spectacle set to music — a high-tech tribute to Red Lake’s golden legacy. There will be a grand opening for the Mining Heritage Museum, live music in the park, free service tours at West Red Lake Gold Mines, and guided boat tours to visit seven historic mining and exploration sites. Find out more at 100yearsofgold.com.
Together, these weekends offer a deep dive into the past while spotlighting what makes Red Lake a modern-day adventure destination. For history enthusiasts eager to explore Red Lake’s past at their own pace, the interactive On The Spot app provides an immersive experience that brings the town’s rich gold mining heritage right to your fingertips. Featuring self-guided tours, historic photos, audio stories, and detailed information about key sites, the app allows visitors to dive into the real-life tales of miners, pilots, and pioneers who built Red Lake from the ground up.
Today, Red Lake is the gateway to Woodland Caribou Provincial Park, one of the most remote and pristine backcountry paddling destinations in North America. The park features hundreds of kilometers of historic canoe routes, unmarked portages, and wildlife-filled forests.